Notes: Early Big Ten play already generating upsets

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Dec. 7—EVANSTON — Results across the country this week gave real credence to the idea it’s tough to win on the road. Nearly impossible, it seems, if you’re an ACC team.

Multiple Top 10 teams lost true road games earlier this week. Top-ranked Kansas got run by 13 points at unranked Creighton, while No. 2 Auburn lost at No. 9 Duke. Then there was No. 5 Marquette experiencing “Hilton Magic” in Ames, Iowa, with a loss at No. 6 Iowa State plus No. 15 Baylor helping No. 25 Connecticut snap a three-game losing streak in a 76-72 win for the Huskies.

And that was just Wednesday. The Big Ten got a taste of the rigors of the road Thursday with Penn State beating No. 8 Purdue by 11 — in a game that wasn’t really that close — in Happy Valley.

But some Big Ten teams kicked off conference play by winning away from home. Michigan did so at No. 11 Wisconsin on Tuesday, while No. 12 Oregon stayed unbeaten by rallying in the second half to beat Southern California in Los Angeles.

Illinois, however, was the latest ranked Big Ten team to lose on the road Friday.

★ ★ ★

Just the right amount of chaos to jumpstart life as an 18-team league. A new-look Big Ten that Brad Underwood is simply going to let play out as it will. The Illinois coach has no expectations for the first season post-westward expansion.

“We don’t know how travel is going to impact things,” Underwood said before Friday night’s 70-66 overtime loss by his No. 19 Illini at Northwestern. “I’m literally trying to keep it as simple as I can. Pay attention to the NET. Pay attention to KenPom. You’re going to see discrepancies in strength of schedule. All of that’s probably going to play out. It has in football. It’s a conversation point. I’m not worried about that. I just want for us to get better. All of our games right now up to Washington are Quad I games except for Chicago State. That’s pretty good strength of schedule and fares pretty well for the NET. We’ve just got to continue to get better and take it game by game.”

★…

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Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/notes-early-big-ten-play-154700761.html

Author : The News-Gazette, Champaign-Urbana, Ill.

Publish date : 2024-12-07 15:47:00

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